


Another Aspect

by MakaylaJade



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Autism, Autistic Spencer Reid, Canon-Typical Violence, Established Relationship, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 22:21:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29923701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MakaylaJade/pseuds/MakaylaJade
Summary: Spencer has a meltdown on the job, but Derek is there to help him through it.
Relationships: Derek Morgan/Spencer Reid
Comments: 12
Kudos: 84





	Another Aspect

**Author's Note:**

  * For [suburbangothic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/suburbangothic/gifts).



> hi guys!! This work was written after a request by my good friend Drey (@endingsbeginnings) on Tumblr! I hope you enjoy!

It was a bad one. No amount of blood or gore fazed Spencer, but something about _kids_ always seemed to get to all of them. Not just any kids - autistic kids, and other special needs children who were snatched on their ways to and from school, only for their bodies to be found nearly twenty-four hours later. Evidence of sexual assault was left on every body, most of which were male, but this unsub did not discriminate against gender. It seemed he was not preferential, and most of them hypothesized that choosing special needs kids made the abductions easier, and Spencer was so incredibly disgusted by the mere thought. How could anyone do those things to a defenseless child?

He was reaching his breaking point. The overwhelming urge to stim was encroaching on him, and he could tell that he was on the verge of a complete and total meltdown because the details of this case were harrowing and he felt so helpless, since all of the leads they had followed thus far ended up going nowhere. Already, a child had died while they were on the case. Seeing his distressed parents crumble against each other as JJ delivered the unfortunate news, through the glass windows of the conference room was heartbreaking. His hands were trembling already. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know.

But then there was Morgan… Derek Morgan, his partner, whom he absolutely adored. Fortunately for Reid, the feelings were very mutual; they had been dating for about ten months now, naturally gravitating towards each other after Tobias Hankle. There was just something they saw in each other, a sense of belonging, of _home_ , that made it work, even though most would look at them and see polar opposites. But they were happy together, and Spencer had never before been in a relationship where his partner was so understanding of his autistic traits - it was like Morgan didn’t even consider it a problem like most did, but rather, he accepted it as another unique aspect of Spencer.

He and Prentiss had just returned from their canvas of the latest crime scene. Prentiss went off to join Rossi in his endeavor through the old case files, and Morgan rejoined with him at their space in the middle of the police department. Spencer had been sitting in that exact spot for at least ten minutes, although he wasn’t entirely sure since he lost track of time when he was in his own head, attempting to escape from the chaos of sensory hell all around him. There were so many people, all around him, so u

“You got anything, Reid?” Derek asked, sounding a bit exacerbated, most likely because nothing had turned up from their investigation at the crime scene. Reid couldn’t find it in himself to respond right away, but when his lips parted, the most horrific thing occurred;

“You got anything, Reid?” He responded effortlessly, his eyes widening in realization at what he had done. He was immediately overcome with embarrassment, his hands balling into fists over his legs. His lower lip began to tremble.

“Okay, it’s okay, baby… Why don’t we go somewhere quiet, okay?” Morgan said, reaching a hand out to allow Spencer to initiate contact himself. Spencer looked up at him, biting his lips to prevent himself from talking, because he knew very well that he would only repeat what Morgan was saying to him. He couldn’t help it - sometimes his brain just overused itself so much that finding words of his own was too difficult, and instead found comfort in repeating what he heard. His hands fidgeted in his lap still, and he stared at the extended hand with an expression somewhere between fear and trepidation. He slowly took it though, standing up with Morgan’s help. As soon as he was standing though, he recoiled rather violently, and instead chose to follow Morgan away from the bustling center of the police department and into an unused office that was dark and empty.

Once inside, Morgan closed the door behind them, pulled the blinds and, without touching the younger man, guided Spencer to sit down on the small sofa inside. Spencer did so, wordlessly, pressing his ever-twitching hands in between his thighs.

“You’re okay, Spencer,” Morgan said to him, crouching down in front of him and opening up his messenger bag, digging around for a stim toy.

“You’re okay, Spencer,” Reid repeated immediately, raising a hand up since he was unable to resist the urge to chew on his finger, nibbling lightly and reveling in the slight discomfort it gave him. Derek glanced up from the bag, a chewable necklace in his hand, the rubber piece blue and shaped like a crystal.

“Hey, hey, don’t hurt yourself, use this instead,” Derek said, holding the necklace up to him but refraining from touching him still - Spencer couldn’t be more grateful. He took the necklace instantly and pressed the chewable toy into his mouth, biting down on it in a constant rhythm, humming quietly in the back of his throat. His hands reached for Derek’s, and even as surprised as he was, Derek held his hands up slowly. Spencer laced their fingers together, squeezing his hands in a pattern mirroring his biting. Squeeze, relax; bite, relax…

About seven minutes later, Spencer’s mind had calmed down, his hands slightly shaking in Derek’s before he lifted one, taking the chewable out of his mouth and slipping it into a baggy in his messenger bag. He would have to wash it later, when they got to the hotel… But that was the least of his concerns. He met Derek’s gaze, and he smiled slightly, Derek squeezing their hands that were still joined.

“How are you feeling?” He asked him, his voice low and calming, and Spencer licked his lips before reaching a hand up to brush his hair away from his face.

“Better…” he said, matching Morgan’s quiet volume. Derek smiled, and as he began to pull his hand away, Spencer immediately pulled it up towards his face, resting his cheek against Derek’s knuckles.

“D-Derek, I…” Spencer started, looking down briefly before raising his gaze to meet Derek’s dark, gentle eyes once more, Thank you.”

“No need to thank me,” Derek said simply, brushing his knuckles over Spencer’s cheekbone, “If you need some more time, no one will think any different. But if not, let’s get this son of a bitch.”

Spencer nodded and with a new sense of determination, followed Derek out of the empty office. _God, I love that man_ , he thought with a content smile, and when they rejoined the team in the department, Spencer approached the map with a new thought in mind, and within ten seconds, he was spouting off a new theory to their team, and he could have sworn he saw a proud smile twitching at the corner of Derek’s lips.

Needless to say, Spencer’s insight led them straight to the unsub, and they boarded the jet that night, arriving home the next morning.

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr - @makaylajadewrites


End file.
